CX Today

CXToday.com

News and Insights for Today, and Tomorrow CX Today reports on the latest customer experience technology news and marketplace trends. Every day our tech journalists uncover the hottest topics and vendor innovations shaping the future of work.  Our coverage is fully digital offering our audience authentic news and insights on the channel of their choice. We offer daily news, weekly features, video conversations and authority content aligned to the needs of business leaders in today's world.For industry professionals, our weekly newsletter offers a range of popular stories hand-picked by our editorial team.  Subscribe to our weekly newsletter.If you're seeking editorial coverage, connect with our news desk.

  1. 9 HR AGO

    60-70% of Your Contact Center Calls Could Already Be Handled by AI. So Why Aren't They?

    Simon Leyland on $50k MDF, agentic AI in the contact center, and why “bold and fast” is the only strategy that makes sense in 2026.  In this discussion, Associate Editor Rhys Fisher sits down with Simon Leyland, CEO and Co-Founder of CloudInteract – one of the UK's leading Advanced AWS Partners, built entirely around Amazon Connect.  With AWS putting up to $75k in Marketing Development Funds on the table for Connect implementations and new Agentic AI specialization categories, there's never been a more urgent moment to ask: is the traditional contact center industry running out of time?  Simon doesn't hold back.  In this candid conversation, Simon argues that the contact center industry is at the same inflection point newspapers hit in 2010 – and that the companies failing to move now will find themselves playing catch-up against competitors running AI agents around the clock.  Key Takeaways Include: 🔴 Why AWS is still being overlooked: even by large enterprises already spending millions with AWS on core infrastructure, Amazon Connect isn't on the radar. Simon explains the organizational disconnect driving that blind spot.  🔴 The 60-70% figure, explained: CloudInteract analyzed thousands of real calls and consistently found 60-70% are simple interactions. Simon breaks down what it takes to get from the industry's current ~10% automation rate to that ceiling.  🔴 Agentic AI vs. bots: technologically similar, but the stakes are entirely different when there's a customer on the end of the line in real time. Simon unpacks the guardrails, data requirements, and human change management piece that makes or breaks a deployment.  For more Customer Experience tech news visit https://www.cxtoday.com

    19 min

  2. 2 DAYS AGO

    Human-First AI: Why SMBs Should Rebalance, Not Replace

    A recent Gartner report suggests that by 2030, generative AI could cost more per customer interaction than a live human agent. What does that mean for small and midsize businesses? In this episode of CX Today, Francesca Roche speaks with Nathan Strum, CEO of Abbey Connect, about how SMBs should rethink automation budgets, customer journeys, and long term growth strategies. Instead of focusing only on cost reduction, Nathan outlines a rebalancing approach that starts with human systems and works backward to apply AI where it adds value. For more Customer Experience tech news visit https://www.cxtoday.com

    8 min

  3. 2 DAYS AGO

    Stop Chasing AI Hype and Start Delivering Real Outcomes

    Rhys Fisher, Associate Editor at CX Today, sits down with Kevin McGachy, Head of Solutions at Sabio, to cut through the AI noise that's plaguing contact centers. If you're tired of flashy AI demos that promise the world but deliver generic chatbots, this conversation is your reality check. Kevin breaks down the costly mistakes organizations make when racing to deploy AI, why voice is still king despite the digital self-service push, and how outcome-based strategies can protect you from vendor lock-in and wasted investment. This isn't another AI hype session; it's a practical roadmap for CX leaders who need results, not regrets. In this frank discussion, McGachy exposes the pressure-driven mistakes that are costing organizations time, money, and competitive advantage: • The ROI Trap: Why building business cases solely around cost reduction creates friction and misses the real value of AI – like addressing high attrition through “zero human impact” automation that doesn't eliminate jobs • Technology-Agnostic Design: How to avoid vendor lock-in by designing systems that can swap between LLMs (Gemini, GPT, etc.) based on performance and cost, rather than betting everything on today's ‘winning’ model • Voice's Staying Power: Why customers still prefer voice for urgent or emotional issues – and how modern conversational AI creates fluid, human-like experiences that adapt in real-time versus rigid IVR decision trees • Outcome-Based Pricing: Sabio's approach to only charging clients when AI successfully resolves customer interactions, eliminating the risk of paying for underwhelming results

    17 min

  4. 6 DAYS AGO

    Why “Bolt-On AI” Is Killing CX ROI

    AI may be everywhere in customer experience, but according to Bloomreach CEO and Co-Founder Raj De Datta, much of it still falls short of delivering real business impact. Speaking to CX Today, De Datta reflected on Bloomreach’s recent milestone of surpassing $260 million in annual recurring revenue, a result he attributes largely to the company’s AI-native approach and the evolution of its Loomi AI platform. Rather than treating AI as an add-on, Bloomreach has embedded it directly into the mechanics of personalization, campaign execution, and product discovery. De Datta warned that many organizations rush to introduce AI without rethinking the workflows underneath: “When you go bolt on AI to an otherwise pre-existing workflow with very little change or a pre-existing system, it’s not that it doesn’t work, it’s just that it doesn’t add that much value.” Simple use cases, such as AI-generated copy suggestions, can add incremental value, but rarely move the needle on revenue or efficiency. The conversation also explored the rise of agentic commerce and what it means in practice, with De Datta outlining three emerging models, from AI-led research conducted through conversational agents; to on-site conversational experiences; and finally, fully agent-driven purchasing. While much of the industry is focused on the end state, he suggested most near-term value will come from the first two. Looking ahead, De Datta advised CX leaders to focus on discoverability in conversational channels, invest in AI-native customer communication platforms, and apply AI to operational tasks that free up teams to focus on higher-value work. As AI becomes a primary interface rather than a background tool, the pressure on CX teams to get this right is only increasing.

    12 min

  5. 5 MAR

    Pragmatic AI vs. “Science Projects”: How to Fix Broken Customer Experiences

    In an era where data breaches are daily headlines, how a company handles a mistake matters more than the mistake itself. Brad Anderson, President of Product Engineering and Security at Qualtrics argues that “radical transparency” is the only way to survive a security misstep. In this interview with Nicole Willing, Anderson warns against the common corporate instinct to minimize the impact of a breach (“only a small number of users affected”) before having the facts. He explains that modern trust is built on clarity: telling customers exactly what happened, who was affected, and what is being done to fix it. If a brand cannot prove it is protecting data, it cannot build loyalty. Beyond crisis management, Anderson details how to build trust proactively by using AI to detect “digital frustration” signals—like rage-tapping—and intervening to help customers before they abandon the brand. There is a clear difference between AI “science projects” and AI that actually solves problems, Anderson argues, making the case that leaders must shift focus to “pragmatic AI” tools that actively close feedback loops and repair broken journeys in real-time. Don’t miss this conversation on the critical trust barrier for enterprise AI adoption, and the rise of AI-enabled “synthetic research” to cut insight time from weeks to hours. For more Customer Experience tech news visit https://www.cxtoday.com

    20 min

  6. 27 FEB

    California Targets Surveillance Pricing, What It Means for Retail, Grocery, and Hotels

    Francesca Roche sits down with Sarah Bruno, a Partner in the Emerging Technologies Group at Reed Smith, to discuss the recent investigative sweep by California’s Attorney General targeting retail, grocery, and hotel sectors for their use of consumer data in surveillance pricing. Sarah Bruno explains that the sweep focuses on how companies use algorithms to set individualized prices based on personal and non-personal data that consumers may not anticipate is being collected. She highlights why these sectors are targeted, given their broad consumer base and the variety of data collected both online and offline. The discussion covers the complexity of compliance. Bruno emphasizes the importance of transparency and human oversight in algorithmic pricing to avoid misleading, unfair, or discriminatory outcomes. She notes that algorithmic pricing can unintentionally lead to discriminatory effects based on data patterns, rather than company intent, and stresses the role of disclosure to maintain customer trust. Bruno considers how this California sweep could set a precedent for other states, influencing how businesses across the U.S. approach personalized pricing, loyalty programs, and CX transparency. She underscores that companies may need to adapt their data collection, notice, and transparency practices to align with evolving regulatory expectations while preserving customer engagement.

    23 min

  7. 25 FEB

    What Moltbook Reveals About the Hidden Security Risks of Autonomous AI Agents

    Ali Sarrafi, CEO and Founder of Kovant, explains why public AI agent platforms expose credentials, lack controls, and attract bad actors. Thanks for watching, if you'd like more like this, don't forget to SUBSCRIBE to our channel. You can also join in the conversation on our LinkedIn pages. For more Customer Experience tech news visit https://www.cxtoday.com

    17 min

  8. 25 FEB

    Command, Not Control: Surviving Social CX Without Losing Your Soul - Sprinklr

    Customers don’t complain in private anymore. They post. They tag. They amplify. And they expect a response before the next refresh. In this CX Today conversation, Rob Wilkinson speaks with Anish Singal, VP of Product Management at Sprinklr, about why “control” is the wrong goal for modern CX, and what it really means to command the moment instead. From AI signal detection and cross-functional war rooms to predictive analytics and governance at speed, this is a grounded discussion about how brands move from reactive firefighting to outcome-driven social CX. What you’ll take away: Why control breaks at the speed of social, and what “command” really means in practiceHow one social signal can escalate into reputational and revenue risk, and how to contain it earlyWhere AI shifts CX from reactive reporting to predictive actionHow to embed governance without slowing teams downThe three rules modern social CX leaders follow: understand meaning, measure outcomes, empower actionWhy employee experience is the foundation of sustainable, high-speed customer experienceWho should watch?: Chief Customer Officers, Heads of CX, and Contact Centre Directors navigating social-first serviceCMOs and digital leaders managing brand reputation in real timeCIOs and transformation leaders embedding AI into service workflowsRisk, compliance, and governance teams responsible for brand integrity at scaleIf your teams are still trying to contain conversations instead of leading them, this discussion offers a practical blueprint for building readiness, accountability, and measurable impact in 2026 and beyond.

    22 min
See All (377)

About

News and Insights for Today, and Tomorrow CX Today reports on the latest customer experience technology news and marketplace trends. Every day our tech journalists uncover the hottest topics and vendor innovations shaping the future of work.  Our coverage is fully digital offering our audience authentic news and insights on the channel of their choice. We offer daily news, weekly features, video conversations and authority content aligned to the needs of business leaders in today's world.For industry professionals, our weekly newsletter offers a range of popular stories hand-picked by our editorial team.  Subscribe to our weekly newsletter.If you're seeking editorial coverage, connect with our news desk.

Information

  • Creator
    CXToday.com
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    377
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Today Digital Ltd - CX Today
  • Show Website
    CX Today